WesWorld

India's Fleet Train currently consists of:

3 Oilers (16,400 t combined capacity)
2 Destroyer tenders
2+1 Submarine tenders, with a fourth conversion planned
6 Light Craft tenders
1 Repair Ship
1 Hospital Ship

Some of these are recent additions, while Otta is a 20 year old rebuild and the earliest oiler is due for a mid-life refit in 1936. Amphibious assets are not included here.

My initial plans for expanding the fleet train over 1934-36 were to add two additional oilers and two ammunition ships. The oilers were to have included some capacity for aviation fuel and munitions, to aid in carrier resupply. The existing oilers are probably tagged with supporting cruiser and patrol assets operating throughout the Indian Ocean. The more confined Bay of Bengal / Andaman Sea probably does not require fleet train oilers at all.

Last night, having read discussions about ship ranges all day, I measured out some distances in an atlas. In the area most likely to see my carriers embark on missions, the northern and western Indian Ocean, pertinent distances are:

Mumbai to Basra, Iraq (the source of my import oil): ~1,550 nm.

Mumbai to Jiddah, Saudi Arabia: ~2,550 nm

Male to Durban, SAE: ~4,200 nm. Note that Diego Garcia, Mauritius, the Seychelles, and Madagascar are all along the route.

By comparison, the Talwar class CV and their escorting Ahmadabad class CL have a range of 20,000 nm @ 12 kts, and their Miraj class escorts 10,000 nm @ 12 kts.

Given the distances involved and the friendly facilties available (SAE, Persia, and perhaps a bit in Hedjaz) - would you see a need for dedicated oiler support to the carriers? Or would you invest your fleet train resources elsewhere?

I'd focus on other things, given relatively limited resources. Or at most minimum cost conversions, where you buy a tanker and perhaps install a couple of light deck-mounted weapons for self-defence without going to the trouble and expense of making them more military.

I don´t think India´s navy needs a much larger oiler fleet. Instead I´d focus on a second repair ship and probably some kind of salvage ship (something to lift sunken subs or other light crafts in shallow waters).

Is the BNS still using coal fired units? If so coal supply could be of some concern.

A high sea rescue ship or large tug also is an option given the sometimes rough weather in the Indian Ocean.

I did refit a couple of large tugs into service in the past year (Q4/32), but I don't think I've ever put the sim up.

The only coal-burners in service are the eight old sloops I picked up from the SAE, and their expected service life is rather short. If I do introduce new coal-burners for some reason, it'd be for coastal escorts using domestic coal production, in which case colliers shouldn't be needed.